Traffic jam as tanker overturns

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Traffic came to a standstill for almost three hours when a fuel tanker had its rear trailer overturned spilling the residual fuel.

The incident took place on the N14 route between Kuruman and Kathu approximately in the vicinity of the Oasis Casino around 11:00 on September 16, 2016. The trailer, belonging to Mack’s Petroleum, was only removed by around two in the afternoon.

According to the eyewitnesses at the scene, the rear trailer had limited control because it was almost empty after having fuelled some of the filling stations in Kuruman. The trailer capsized whilst still connected to the main trailer and was dragged several metres before the driver could stop. The driver took control of the situation though and there was no casualty.

The collapsed tanker had to be disconnected from the main one to allow the driver to proceed with the main tanker to distribute fuel to Kathu filling stations.

Several hundred of litres of fuel were spilled and the Ga-Segonyana municipal fire brigade had to rush to the scene to douse the spill with water to avoid any chances of ignition.

The towing company Grand Prix had to come and remove the tanker from the road and later towed it to safety. However, with the frequency of hazardous materials passing through the town of Kuruman, does the town have the ideal bylaws and the capacity to outwit the real situation of controlling hazardous waste? Municipal traffic officers had to attend to the scene either by using their own vehicles or on foot as the municipality’s fleet is non-existent.

The situation was so visible and needs authorities to look at it as a matter of urgency.